Microsoft 365 Business Premium offers the most value-added benefits. The service is an oasis for small to medium size businesses (SMBs). And having so much access to the Microsoft ecosystem is a foundation for businesses of every budget and scale. However, for SMBs specifically, where businesses previously could not previously imagine adopting a remote workforce, Business Premium and its offerings are providing a lifeline in this constantly transitional and transformational age of working.
The Business Premium assets are so strong that our own information has only been skimming the surface. And with that in mind we wanted to delve a little deeper into some of the more complicated facets of Business Premium. Specifically, security.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium has built-in security that reinforces your cyber threat defense
Security isn’t just a main focal point because of media surrounding the latest data breaches and cyber threats. While initiatives are made to focus on the larger vested interests (hospital ransomware attacks, for example) and danger to the general public, that doesn’t mean SMBs should be forgotten. Microsoft agrees, which is why Microsoft 365 Business Premium includes access controls and other data loss preventative measures.
Data loss prevention should be a priority for us all. Our information is constantly being put out into the ether in ways we can’t control. As basic consumers, we rely on the businesses we trust to protect us as well as themselves.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium security features breakdown
As an integrated cloud-based solution that brings together productivity apps from the Microsoft ecosystem and collaboration tools, Business Premium is so much more than just a collection of Office apps. The device management capabilities and built-in security make this plan an elite offering for SMBs.
The price may be a little steep for smaller organizations, but there’s no real price tag on the peace of mind that the accessible security Business Premium brings to the table. With the cloud-based enhanced visibility of a company’s digital footprint on phones, tablets and computers, all corporate and personal devices are kept as secure as possible.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium has an abundance of security features to help businesses prevent ransomware and cyberattacks. Structured around three different areas, the SKU becomes equipped with threat protection, data protection and device management.
Threat protection
- Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) – Advanced Threat Protection is a cloud-based email filtering feature that uses AI to protect businesses from a range of cyber threats. ATP Safe Links protects employees from malicious embedded URLs in emails or documents while ATP Safe Attachments protects employees from malware and viruses attached to messages or documents.
- Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) – With the influx of millions of fraudulent sign-in attempts every day on Microsoft’s cloud services, implementing MFA has quickly become a requirement for doing business online. Microsoft 365 Business Premium comes equipped with built-in MFA that requires employees to present a second form of authentication, such as a verification code or physical token, to confirm their identity before accessing resources within their cloud.
Data protection
Business Premium’s data protection features help organizations safeguard their business-critical data and ensure only authorized personnel has continued access to it. Even though cyber defense is the priority, there are a multitude of added benefits of data protection and control.
- Data Loss Prevention (DLP) – DLP policies help organizations identify and protect business-sensitive information including Social Security numbers and credit card numbers as well as medical records. You can create and implement a data loss prevention policy tailored to your organization’s security needs. These policies need to be put in place manually by administrators.
- Message Encryption – Microsoft 365 Business Premium’s built-in message encryption combines encryption and access rights capabilities to ensure only intended recipients can view the contents of the message. Message encryption is compatible with email services including Outlook, Yahoo, Gmail and more.
- Exchange Online Archiving – Microsoft 365 Business Premium comes equipped with Exchange Online Archiving, a cloud-based archiving and data recovery solution that is compatible with Microsoft Exchange or Exchange Online. This feature supports organizations in archiving, compliance, regulatory and eDiscovery challenges by providing advanced archiving capabilities including holds and data redundancy. Businesses can leverage archiving to provide secure, long-term cloud storage that meets regulatory compliance requirements.
Device management
Business Premium offers device management features that allow administrators to have the visibility and control needed to limit or grant access to employees with enrolled devices. In the same way, cyber threats are a nightmare scenario, even something as mildly troublesome as a disgruntled employee, although a much lower-level threat, it’s important to be mindful that data leaks can come from anywhere and business need to protect themselves from everyone.
- Conditional Access Policies – Businesses can utilize conditional access policies to specify access restrictions based on several factors. These factors include the time of day, device type, location, and more.
- Mobile Device Management (MDM) – Organizations can create and manage personal device policies to help prevent data loss and manage employee mobile devices. Admins can reset a device to its factory settings for distribution to a new employee. Administrators can also remotely wipe devices that have been lost or stolen to remove all sensitive company data. Compliance profiles allow businesses to enforce security settings such as a PIN code requirement on a device that has access to company data.
- BitLocker Encryption – An additional layer of security utilizing a Trusted Platform Module (TPM Chip), to encrypt data on a device. Without the BitLocker key present, the data is unreadable to a 3rd party.
- Automatic Updates – Keep employee devices up to date on security features and updates. Configure automatic updates on a defined schedule.
Learn more about leveraging Microsoft 365 Business Premium
These core areas of Microsoft 365 Business Premium come together to form an organized and inclusive cyber threat defense that strengthens businesses’ security stance and keeps sensitive data secure from online threats and unauthorized access. Interested in learning more about Business Premium? Join Sherweb’s partner program for tailored guidance through the Microsoft partner ecosystem and access to expert cloud specialists ready to help your business grow.
This guest blog is courtesy of Sherweb. Read more Sherweb guest blogs here. Regularly contributed guest blogs are part of ChannelE2E’s sponsorship program.
